If you use a Windows Phone or install the Cortana app on your Android phone, Microsoft's digital assistant can now show alerts from your handset on your computer and let you respond. MORE: How To Search for Files With Cortana in Windows 10
What's the point of having a lock screen that requires you to authenticate, if anyone can walk up to your computer and perform a variety of important tasks without your permission? With Windows Hello facial recognition, I was often logged in by the time I was ready to say 'Hey Cortana.'
However, letting it access sensitive information such as your reminders or contacts without having you logged in seems like an unnecessary risk that Microsoft shouldn't let you take. Putting Cortana on the lock screen offers some convenience if you have a really good microphone on your laptop and want to ask the assistant to check the weather or a sports score from across the room like you would with Amazon's Echo device.
